Cockfighting - martial arts hobby

(Baonghean) - "The chicken breed is very heroic / Also has five virtues, also has a hundred talents", in the deep minds of many people, the game of cockfighting is both entertaining, contributing to nurturing the martial spirit and is the glue that binds the community spirit. The game of cockfighting has become a traditional cultural feature of many wards and communes in the coastal tourist town of Cua Lo...

A cockfight in Nghi Thuy ward on the occasion of Cua Lo River Festival.

Mr. Thai Ngoc Hinh - Head of Nghi Thuy Ward Cockfighting Club said that this elaborate hobby originated decades ago, since the town was first established. Many wards have established cockfighting clubs such as Thu Thuy, Nghi Tan, Nghi Thuy. All year round in this coastal land, cockfighting festivals can always take place on the occasion of events such as: celebrating holidays, Tet, the town's founding day... On each occasion, the wards take turns hosting the organization, so that chickens from other wards flock to compete. Each time like that, according to Mr. Thai Ngoc Hinh: "It is a big festival because everyone loves watching cockfighting". Men, women, old and young, big and small all temporarily stop fishing, working, gather at the stadium, excitedly and passionately watching the fights between the chickens.

Raising and playing with fighting cocks is a very elaborate job, the main thing is to have love and passion, because raising fighting cocks is very elaborate, from choosing the breed to taking care of and bringing the cocks to the fighting ring. Taking care of fighting cocks is like taking care of a "baby".

Choosing a chicken with a noble appearance is difficult, but taking care of it to become a good fighting chicken is even more difficult. Every day, the chicken must be fed 2 meals of rice, and every 3 to 5 days, the chicken must be fed eel, frog, and toad meat... Always keep an eye on the chicken to avoid getting sick, avoid the cold in winter and avoid the heat in summer. When the chicken is one year old, start training. The training process usually lasts 2 months - what the trade calls "training". After letting the chicken fight, the chicken must be "steamed". First, boil the herbal leaves, then dip a towel in the leaf water, wring it dry, let the towel warm enough and apply the towel to the chicken, especially the painful areas. Steaming the chicken is intended to harden the skin, heal the wounds and make the chicken's tendons supple. The chicken must go through 4 rounds of training and 4 rounds of steaming before being brought to the "fighting arena".

Mr. Phung Ba Yen, Nghi Thuy Ward, a former Navy soldier of Region 3, has been involved in cockfighting for more than 20 years. He said that cockfighting players consider 2 cocks as fighters. The dangerous moves, the good matches and the cocks considered "divine cocks" have become "legendary", passed down and praised by people in the profession. He confided that a cockfighter who raises fighting cocks all his life only needs to "cast" one talented cock, which is mentioned everywhere, and he is satisfied. He led us to the barn right next to his house. There, he had it built quite elaborately, discreetly and firmly. Separately in each compartment are 6 very majestic looking cocks. He said: "Basically, there are only 3 main cocks for fighting, the purple cock, the black cock and the swallow cock. The black cock (black) won the highest prize in the 2012 Cua Lo River Festival season." Mr. Hinh's "heroic chickens" are quite famous, because his gray chicken has won the highest prize 4 times in a row (2 times at the town level, 2 times at the ward level).

Mr. Duong Ngoc Xo - Chairman of Nghi Thuy Ward People's Committee said: During each Mai Bang Temple Festival (worshiping General Le Khoi) on February 12 - lunar calendar every year, in addition to the ceremony, there is also a festival, with many folk games, including cockfighting. Over the years, this beautiful custom has been passed down and has become an attractive game for many people; since then, whenever there are big holidays, people here often organize cockfighting. The ward also helps and creates conditions for the cockfighting club to develop in a healthy way. In addition, the ward has directed the ward's Cultural Department to closely monitor, not allowing this traditional game to be distorted.

Tran Hai